Play! Pokémon Team Challenge Announced!

After reading the email that was sent out, I will say it seemed like a cool thing especially with how we really can't host in person events but some of the wording seems very rushed.

particularly that discord is optional, then not 2 sentences later you will use discord and RK9
 
Why is this only for the masters' division though?

Presumably due to either legal or other concerns related to minors and COPPA (for Juniors in particular) and other rules regulating minors. Don't forget this is international, and there are a lot of laws regulating online privacy for minors in different countries.
 
I don't get it why only master's division. I couldn't play in the player's cup or this. It's really making me want to quit the game.

It's definitely frustrating, and as a league leader of a nearly entirely Juniors league, I absolutely feel your pain. Pokémon though doesn't have a lot of options when it comes to online activities, especially as an international game, as there are so many laws in different countries regulating what can be done with regards to minors online.

All I can suggest is putting in a ticket to give them the feedback - **politely** letting them know you're interested in competing as a Senior/Junior/etc., and seeing what happens. I don't think they'll permit you to participate in this tournament, but it's possible they might have something in the pipeline - or at least a more specific explanation for why they can't.

Pokémon cares very strongly about being first and foremost a game for children of all ages, and I'm sure they would make competitions available for everyone if there was any feasible way to do so.

And remember - this **will** pass. We won't be online forever; even if it's another year or more, there will be in-person Pokémon tournaments again. It sucks that we have to wait, but a lot of people have lost a lot more.
 
great, another one. good childrens game that children aren't allowed to play. cool cool. very motivating and engaging for them!

looks good, but really bad idea not letting kids play.
 
For anybody wondering why it's only for a certain division, Discord's Terms of Service has you be at least 13 or the minimum age of digital consent in your country. Specifically, to quote the Terms of Service:
[...] you agree (i) that you are 13 years of age and the minimum age of digital consent in your country, (ii) if you are the age of majority in your jurisdiction or over, that you have read, understood, and accept to be bound by the Terms, and (iii) if you are between 13 (or the minimum age of digital consent, as applicable) and the age of majority in your jurisdiction, that your legal guardian has reviewed and agrees to these Terms.
Now you may be wondering then why the minimum age to participate in this is 16/18 and not 13 as per Discord's Terms. I am also wondering why it's 16/18 and not 13 as per the Terms. I'm not a legal expert, but maybe it has something to do with the "minimum age of digital consent, as applicable" being 16/18 in one of those countries eligible to partake in this. I dunno. I'm just sitting here wondering why they're using Discord in the first place and not some other platform that could be expanded to include people under 16/18, which I assume is a big chunk of the playerbase.
 
Eh... I’m still not super-trusting of TCGO-based tournaments so I’ll be bowing out of this.

And while this is somewhat minor, I’m also not happy with the lack of physical prizes outside of playmats. I get that we can’t have physical tournaments due to the pandemic but that shouldn’t extend to prizing.
For anybody wondering why it's only for a certain division, Discord's Terms of Service has you be at least 13 or the minimum age of digital consent in your country. Specifically, to quote the Terms of Service:

Now you may be wondering then why the minimum age to participate in this is 16/18 and not 13 as per Discord's Terms. I am also wondering why it's 16/18 and not 13 as per the Terms. I'm not a legal expert, but maybe it has something to do with the "minimum age of digital consent, as applicable" being 16/18 in one of those countries eligible to partake in this. I dunno. I'm just sitting here wondering why they're using Discord in the first place and not some other platform that could be expanded to include people under 16/18, which I assume is a big chunk of the playerbase.
It’s definitely due to EU digital privacy/protection laws, COPPA isn’t concerned with anyone past 13. And the Discord requirement is probably due to how widespread and how easy-to-use it is compared to other chat apps.
 
It’s definitely due to EU digital privacy/protection laws, COPPA isn’t concerned with anyone past 13. And the Discord requirement is probably due to how widespread and how easy-to-use it is compared to other chat apps.
Yeah, I had a feeling it had to do with other countries. Makes sense.
 
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